COVID-19 restrictions in Fiji helped curb the spread of the virus

Embargoed until: Publicly released: 2022-08-31 09:01

Australia; Pacific; NSW

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The exponential spread of COVID-19 cases in Fiji was curbed by the government's movement and health restrictions, according to Fijian and Australian experts. The team used a model on national COVID-19 to track how the rate of virus transmission changed over the course of the pandemic. The researchers say both movement restrictions like lockdowns, bans on public gatherings and school/university closures and public health measures like mask mandates, vaccine mandates and social distancing were associated with slowing the rate of infection in the country.

Media release

From: The Royal Society

An assessment of transmission dynamics via time-varying reproduction number of the second wave of the COVID-19 epidemic in Fiji
Royal Society Open Science

The time-varying reproduction number for the second pandemic wave in Fiji is estimated using the popular EpiEstim R package. The findings show that the non-pharmacological interventions and movement control orders introduced and enforced by the Fijian Government significantly prevented the spread of COVID-19. The results show that the COVID-19 transmission had the strongest association with the lockdown of cities, social distancing and mandatory facemasks, restriction of movements, closure of schools and universities, and the ban on public gatherings. Contact: Dr Rajnesh Lal, Fiji National University, rajnesh.lal@fnu.ac.fj, 8639803, +679 8639803, URL after publication: https://royalsocietypublishing.org/doi/10.1098/rsos.220004

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Journal/
conference: Royal Society Open Science

Research:Paper

Organisation/s: University of Technology Sydney (UTS), Charles Sturt University, Fiji National University, Fiji

Funder: No funding received for this study.

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